This invention relates in general to a radiation compatible lubricant for a medical device such as an intravenous (IV) catheter and introducer needle assembly.
IV catheters are designed to infuse normal intravenous solutions, including antibiotics and other drugs, into a patient. These catheters are also used to withdraw blood from the patient for normal blood-gas analysis as well as other blood work.
A sharp introducer needle must be used to puncture the skin, tissue and vein wall to provide a path for placement of the catheter in the vein. Typical IV catheters are "over-the-needle" catheters where the catheter is coaxially placed over the needle. Placement of the catheter and the introducer needle into the patient causes sharp pain to the patient. In order to facilitate insertion of the catheter and introducer needle into the vein and to minimize patient discomfort, the catheter and needle can both be lubricated. Most IV catheters are lubricated with polydimethyl siloxane silicone fluid or modified polydimethyl siloxane such as an amino-terminated, carboxy-terminated or polyether silicone copolymer.
Since IV catheters communicate with blood and tissues, these devices must be sterilized. The most commonly used method of sterilization is exposing the device to ethylene oxide. The alternative method is exposing the device to gamma rays or electron beams. Ultraviolet or x-rays may also be used. When these lubricated IV catheters are irradiated, the viscosity of the silicone fluid increases which affects the lubricity of the device. This effect is dependent upon the molecular weight of the specific silicone molecule as well as the exposure dose. For example, the viscosity of less viscous silicone fluid after irradiation may increase several fold and the material may remain as a liquid. On the other hand, a silicone fluid having a viscosity of one million centistokes may turn into a silicone rubber after it is irradiated. This characteristic will obviously have a deleterious effect on lubricity and the performance of the product.
Irradiation of the catheter also effects the polymer from which the catheter is formed. It is well known that irradiation of polymeric materials causes changes in the molecular structure. Usually these changes are destructive resulting in the degradation of molecules. Very often these degraded molecules exist initially in the form of ionic species or free radicals. If these free radicals are quenched as soon as they are formed, the net result is the lowering of the molecular weight of the polymer. If the irradiated material was in the form of a solution in certain solvents, the viscosity of the solution is greatly reduced. For example, a gel made of hydroxyethyl cellulose dissolved in water when irradiated at 2.0 to 5.0 megarads becomes a liquid as a result of losing the viscosity. If, on the other hand, the generated free radicals are not quenched, further degradation of the material, repolymerization of the polymer and even cross linking takes place. This can cause either a decrease or an increase in viscosity sometimes to the extent that gelation occurs. A good example is that of polyvinylpyrrolidone. When this polymer is irradiated in water solutions it gels to a thick mass. Whether gelation or degradation will occur after irradiation depends on the nature of the molecule and its environment. Most polymeric materials degrade after irradiation and few of them polymerize and cross-link after exposure to irradiation.